As a part of G Suite for Education, Murray State University Google accounts have access to Google Forms - an easy way to make a quick survey or registration form! As Google is constantly adding and updating features, it’s always best to check Google’s website for additional help. To provide some information on some key features and to help guide users through securing their forms and responses, Murray State has created this “FAQ & Best Practices” article to assist our users.
If you have questions about Google Forms, please contact the Service Desk at 270-809-2346 or msu.servicedesk@murraystate.edu.
What can I ask in my form?
You can ask almost anything in your form! However, due to FERPA, information security, and personal privacy, you should never ask for grades, passwords, and “personally identifiable information” (PII) like Social Security numbers.
Prevent a person from seeing other responses
Google offers the ability for people to see other responses after they have submitted their own response. By default, this option is turned off
Please note that if this setting is enabled, and a user clicks the “See previous responses” option after submitting the form, that user will be granted access to see all information users have submitted intentionally or unintentionally. To protect user data, Murray State recommends keeping this feature turned off.
To check this setting, click Settings then scroll down to the Presentation subheading. You may need to expand the menu by clicking the triangle on the right-hand side. Next, toggle the slider next to View results summary so it is grey to turn this setting off.
What are my sharing options?
Just like other Google Drive files, you as the owner have the ability to control who has access to view and edit both your Google Form and the Google Spreadsheet (response spreadsheet).
For the Form, click on the vertical 3 dot icon in the upper right, and then click on “Add collaborators…” If you add a person as a collaborator, not only can they edit the form, but they can also view all responses.
For the Spreadsheet, click on the blue SHARE icon in the upper right corner. Here you have the option to add a user so they can edit, comment, or only view the spreadsheet.
Google Forms vs. SurveyMonkey (and other survey tools)
Google Forms is a quick tool for event registrations, requesting information, and gathering feedback. However, there are many instances where you should use SurveyMonkey; especially in a research or class presentation setting, or if you want use the data for analytical purposes. We have provided a SurveyMonkey request form to assist with this.
Get email notifications (Notification Rules)
There are two ways to get email notifications when a person submits a response
Option 1
From the Google Form, click on “RESPONSES”, then click the 3-vertical dot icon. From that menu, select “Get email notifications for new responses.”
Option 2
If you have linked your form to a Google spreadsheet to collect responses, you have a few more options for how you receive an email notification. To do this, go to the response spreadsheet, click on “Tools” and then “Notification rules…”
Customize your confirmation message
It’s always a great idea to thank people for filling out your form. It’s especially helpful to include some contact information in case a person has a question about the form, or needs to make changes to their response.
